Jobs took the number one ranking in 2010 but his drop to fifth place in 2011's list is unsurprising given the fact that Jobs has spent most of this year on a medical leave of absense.

However, he has returned to the spotlight on two notable occasions: Firstly, to announce the iPad 2 and secondly to unveil iCloud. The strong sales of Apple's tablet have opened up new opportunities for publishers to engage their audience in the digital space and despite some discontent over Apple's subscription model and the emergence of Android tablets the iPad accounts for a large chunk of the paid-for digital publishing market.

"Having topped the MediaGuardian 100 last year Jobs is beaten to the top of this year's list by Mark Zuckerberg, in part because he has done nothing in the past 12 months to match the impact of the launch of the original iPhone or iPad, and in part because questions inevitably remain over his medical condition," Jobs' entry in the MediaGuardian 100 2011 reads.

"Nobody is quite sure where the combination of visionary zeal and relentless drive will come from if Jobs's absence becomes prolonged," it continues.

The MediaGuardian report is also optimistic about Apple's future - again, unsurprisingly, given the strong financial results the company posted last week.

"Apple, however, still looks unstoppable. It was on the brink of disaster when Jobs returned to it after a 12-year absence in 1997. In between he bought a graphics hardware developer that he turned into Pixar and sold to Disney for $7.4bn in 2006. He also founded NeXT Computer, which Apple bought in 1996 for its technology – and to get Jobs back. It turned out to be money well spent," the report reads.

Facebook's Zuckerberg hits the top of the list at a time when his site can boast more than 750 million members worldwide, while Dorsey's ranking reflects the increasing popularity and ubiquity of Twitter. Larry Page, having taken over the reigns as CEO of Google from Eric Schmidt, appears in the MediaGuardian list as a solo entry for the first time, without co-founder Sergey Brin.

Executives from News International have taken a significant hit in this year's top 100, with James Murdoch dropping out of the top 10 and Rebekah Brooks dropping out of the top 100 altogether in the wake of the recent phone-hacking scandal.